Montana Senators Work to Pass Savanna's Act

Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines, both members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, played critical roles in advancing Savanna’s Act, named for murder victim Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind from North Dakota.

The bill will improve tribal access to federal databases for tracking missing and unidentified persons, require the Department of Justice to consult with tribes while developing guidelines, mandate reporting statistics regarding missing and murdered Indians to Congress, and provide Indian tribes and law enforcement agencies with training and technical assistance in implementing guidelines of the act.

Statistics from the National Institute of Justice show that more than 80 percent of native women experience violence. “All of us must work together to end this epidemic. Savanna’s Act would ensure we all have access to the most comprehensive data regarding these crimes and make sure law enforcement agencies are on the same page as they investigate this unacceptable epidemic,” said Tester.

Both Senators called for a hearing on the issue of missing and murdered persons in Indian country, which took place Dec. 12. Daines stated, “We face tragedies from across Montana where tribal citizens, particularly women and girls, go missing without a trace. We must do all in our power to curb the crisis of American Indians and Alaska Natives who disappear and whose cases never see justice. I’m glad to see that the committee is treating this issue with the seriousness it deserves.”

Daines secured Kimberly Loring HeavyRunner as a witness at the hearing. Loring HeavyRunner, of Missoula, is the sister of Ashley Loring HeavyRunner, of the Blackfeet Tribe, who disappeared June 8, 2017. K. Loring HeavyRunner said, “I’m here today to stress to you that I believe law enforcement did not take Ashley’s case seriously, as well as others girls that have gone missing and been murdered in Indian Country.”

Daines demanded answers from the Bureau of Indian Affairs as to why it took so long to launch an investigation. “Does it seem like protocol is being followed when there was a two-month lag time between when Ashley went missing and when the case began as a missing person?,” pressed Daines.

Tester questioned where the system was failing, “Where’s the problem? Is it with BIA, is it with the FBI, is it with tribal law enforcement? Why are we not finding these people? We have got to find a solution to this. We have to,” said the senator.

The bill has now moved to the House for consideration but House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-VA, has blocked the measure. Goodlatte has not commented on his reasons for doing so. Outgoing North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp, D, sponsor of the bill, has warned that if the House does not pass the bill before the end of the session, the bill would need to be reintroduced in the next Congress.